When reading catalogs offering trips around Australia, we feel a little sorry for Melbourne. Because of the three big attractions of the smallest continent - "spoilt" Sydney, the underwater paradise of the Great Barrier Reef and the red rock of Uluru - Melbourne is often overlooked.
But the city gets under our skin slowly - during a walk through the Victorian downtown or along the lively embankment of the Yarra River or over a cup of flat white coffee in one of the trendy cafes on Chapel Street. In the early 1990s, Melbourne was a rather unfriendly city to pedestrians, but then the city authorities invited the Danish architect and urban planner Jan Gehl to make a study that would make the city more accessible and friendly to residents and visitors. Gehl emphasized that it is necessary to change, above all, the public areas, widen the streets and green them. Melbourne is a different city today. In the city of almost four million people, there is still the crowd and human excitement that can be felt in New York, except that in the southern hemisphere there is no stress or fear for one's own safety. Wide pavements, tree canopy, no driving in many areas and lively cafes confirm the fact that Melbourne is one of the cities with the highest quality of life, much to the delight of the locals. The history of the city can be learned in the Gold Treasury Museum, dedicated to the gold rush, and in the Immigration Museum, which is dedicated to immigrants. The most important achievements of artists from all over the world hang on the walls of the National Gallery of Victoria, where there is a particularly interesting section dedicated to Australian art. After the "tall blonde", as Melbournians call the white coffee in Federation Square, which functions as a huge theater surrounded by glass and steel, we treat ourselves to a tour of Victorian buildings built in the middle of the nineteenth century, during the height of the gold rush. One of the biggest attractions, especially for children, is the Melbourne Aquarium (Melbourne Aquarium), while adults and children have fun visiting the interactive Melbourne Museum, which shows, among other things, Aboriginal life. Since the city is "obsessed" with sports, we must also take some time to visit the Australian Gallery of Sport.
For under the teeth
It is impossible to describe the culinary offer of the city in just a few lines, but we must emphasize that Melbourne can boast of an extremely developed food culture, which is not only reflected in the number of restaurants, but also in the cosmopolitan crowd of people who cook, have fun, eat and enjoy the varied range of gourmet pleasures that are intended for them. In the Brunswick area, we feel like we're walking through a Middle Eastern market, surrounded by the aroma of Egyptian, Turkish and Iranian desserts, topped with romantic rose-scented water. A few kilometers away, we will literally enter Little Italy, located around Lygon Street in the Carlton neighborhood. Here we will always be addressed with the word ciao, a winning smile and the tempting smell of basil, tomatoes and garlic - the "holy trinity" of Italian cuisine. We have to try the best pizza in town at the Papa Gino restaurant, which is a true Little Italy institution. In Chinatown around Little Bourke Street, the large Asian population prepares exotic dishes, from simple glass noodles to crispy Peking duck. The symbol of Asian cuisine in this part of the city is the Flower Drum restaurant, which is especially famous for its duck. Enthusiasts of Japanese cuisine will be happy to visit the Kuni's restaurant, where they will serve us fresh sushi or wonderfully fragrant yakitori chicken. Let's return to Europe via Lonsdale Street, which really is a little Greece, as Melbourne has the largest Greek population outside of Greece. Some taverns also have an entertainment program, if you happen to want to throw plates or dance sirtaki. Stalactites Tavern on the corner of Lonsdale and Russell Streets is a friendly family restaurant that becomes a gathering place for hungry clubbers after three in the morning.
Melbourne has a rich cultural life, but when we talk about events in the city, we have to mention the Australian Open tennis tournament in January, the horse racing in November and the Formula 1 race. into ecstasy and during the aforementioned three events, life in the city is turned upside down; it's actually one big party. The Melbourne Cup horse race is so important that it is celebrated as a holiday. Who would miss the opera at such events?!
Nightlife
In the evenings, we can watch young careerists and aspiring artists as they end a more or less successful day with a drink in Docklands, a once neglected shipyard that has been successfully renovated by Australians. Docklands has become a small town with stylish office space, minimalist apartments, international restaurants, galleries and bars that attract the young and successful. In the late evening hours, we go to explore many of Melbourne's side streets, where new trends and cultural guidelines are born. Among the many galleries, bars hidden in dark alleys, mostly behind unmarked doors, are particularly interesting, and their interiors are so imaginative that they could be galleries themselves. The most interesting are Baroq House, Sister Bella, which gives the appearance of a shop from the seventies, and Section 8. If we can't decide whether to hang out with fashionistas or rich snobs, we head to Courtin House, the former headquarters of the Communist Party, but today address where three clubs operate. In the first part, called Cookie, young businessmen hang out, and in addition to music, they can enjoy Thai food and drinks in a bar that resembles a huge library. Upstairs is the Toff in the Town club, full of booths and music that ranges from gypsy harmonica to deafeningly loud metal. The highest floor is the Rooftop Cinema, where you can admire film classics and watch the city below from plastic chairs while enjoying a great cocktail.
